S/4HANA
S/4HANA - short for SAP Business Suite 4 SAP HANA, is SAP's next-generation application suite - extends the ERP software. SAP S/4HANA runs on the SAP database HANA, which is also where the name comes from. In SAP ERP, the update is considered one of the most extensive. SAP S/4HANA is a real-time ERP suite for digital business. It is based exclusively on the in-memory platform SAP HANA and thus enables a simplification of the data model.
If a typical existing SAP ERP customer wants to switch to SAP S/4HANA, it is necessary to upgrade to the latest enhancement package (at least EHP7), followed by migrating the existing database to SAP HANA and replacing it (migration) with the simplified, innovative solutions (new code).
Two versions available
An integration of SAP S/4HANA into one's own company can be undertaken in various ways. There are two different versions. In addition to SAP S/4HANA ON-Premise, there is also S/4HANA Cloud. The on-premise version is similar to SAP Business Suite in terms of support, localisation, content as well as functionality. With this version, the customer has the choice between an external variant with a corresponding partner as host or on-premise deployment.
The cloud variant includes solutions for controlling, accounting, plant administration and purchasing. Integration with SAP Ariba, SAP Fieldglass, SAP SuccessFactors and SAP Hybris is also possible. A cloud release is provided for the cloud version on a quarterly basis. For the on-premise version, on the other hand, a release is only available once a year. However, service pack stacks and/or feature pack stacks are issued once a quarter.